Here is the darling mom to be, my daughter Jenna, my daughter in law Lauren, and surrogate daughter Ester.
Before I begin any project I do an inspiration board. It helps me visualize all of the elements to make sure they all “jive” You can use canva or olioboard for this.
I am not big on renting expensive party supplies. I found the Kate Spade polka dot napkins on Ebay. I would rather buy something I can reuse than rent expensive napkins and table toppers. I had the reasonable tabletoppers made at Linen Order on Etsy. The silver feathers I already owned purchase at Bijou in Paso Robles. One of my favorite sources for darling clothes, baby things and gifts! The coral ribbon was purchased on Amazon as well as the polka dot caspari napkins.
I made the nametags myself on Canva. I am a huge Canva fan.I had originally planned to have the party outside but it was too cold. We set up two round tables in the family room
…and used the long table in the dining room. I made the Mommy to be sign on Canva.
We played a couple simple games for icebreakers. This one was a good one . We played it as soon as everyone arrived. Be sure to time it and watch out for collaborators (or cheaters Pat & Mary)!!
The winner or “winners” received a prize of Essie Coral and Gray nail polish in the shower colors.
My assistants did all the food except for the two simple appetizers that are two of my simple gotos. Brussel Sprouts with lemon yogurt dip, adapted from this food network recipe and my favorite smoked trout dip.
Brussel Sprouts with Lemon-Yogurt Dip
How to Make It
Preheat the oven to 375°. In a bowl, toss the kale with all but 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and half of the garlic. Spread the brussel sprouts on 2 baking sheets and roast in the upper and lower thirds of the oven for about 15 minutes, until crisp; shift the pans from top to bottom halfway through. Season the kale with salt and pepper and transfer to a large platter.
In a small bowl, whisk the yogurt with the lemon zest and juice and the remaining garlic and 1 tablespoon of oil. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with the roasted brussel sprouts.
For the brunch Pat made a gorgeous fresh fruit platter
and this amazing beet salad
Roasted Beet Salad with Citrus Viniagrette
For the Salad:
- 5 ounces arugula, wild rocket, or your preferred mixed greens
- 1/8 cup raw pine nuts
- 1/4 cup pomegranate arils (optional, but so pretty!)
- Goat Cheese, crumbled
- 1 ruby red grapefruit, sectioned
- Lightly toast the pine nuts in a dry frying pan for 3-4 minutes or until the pine nuts turn golden brown. Pine nuts can go from toasted to burnt really quickly, so whatever you do, don’t walk away from that pan! They burn so easily and the smell is worse than burnt popcorn in the company break room! This is speaking from experience! Remove the pine nuts from the heat and set aside.
- Section the grapefruit by removing the peel and the white pith with a very sharp knife. Working over the bowl of sliced beets, hold the grapefruit in one hand and with the knife in your other hand, cut alongside the membrane of each section allowing the sections to fall into bowl. Gently fold the grapefruit into the beets.
- Lightly dress the arugula with the remainder of the dressing and toss with your hands (you don’t have to use it all–the recipe makes about 1 cup of dressing).
- Top the arugula with the beets and grapefruit, then sprinkle with the pine nuts, goat cheese and pomegranate arils.
For the Citrus Viniagrette
- 1/4 c champagne vinegar
- 1/3 cup orange juice
- 3/4 cup citrus olive oil
- 3 T lemon juice
- 2 T orange juice
- 1 small shallot
- 1/4 t grated lemon zest
Add kosher salt and ground pepper to taste. Shake in a jar. Can be made a day ahead and kept for a week.
Lauren made these delicious phyllo egg cups from Food Network, and these andouille gougeres from Epicurious
Andouille Gougeres
INGREDIENTS
-
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt plus more
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 5 eggs
- 2 1/2 oz Gruyère, grated
- 4 oz andouille sausage, chopped
-
- Preheat oven to 425° with racks in upper and lower thirds. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large saucepan, combine 1 cup water, butter, and 1/2 tsp salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. When butter has melted, add flour all at once, stirring vigorously with a wooden spoon. Reduce heat to medium; keep stirring until mixture has formed a smooth, thick paste and pulls away from sides of pan, about 3 minutes. Transfer to bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment or to a large heatproof bowl.
- If using a stand mixer, add 4 eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed until egg is incorporated and dough is smooth before adding the next egg.
- If mixing by hand, add 4 eggs, 1 at a time, stirring with a wooden spoon until egg is incorporated and dough is smooth before adding the next egg. The mixture should be very thick, smooth, and shiny. Stir in Gruyère and andouille.
- Use a tablespoon measure to drop dough into 1″ rounds about 1 1/2″ apart on prepared baking sheets. You should have about 24 gougères.
- In a small bowl, whisk remaining egg with a pinch of salt. Brush the top of each gougère with egg wash.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce oven to 375°, rotate baking sheets, and continue baking until gougères are puffed and browned, about 15 minutes more. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Phyllo Egg Cups with Ham and Cheese
INGREDIENTS
8 sheet phyllo dough, thawed
⅓ cup (75 mL) butter, melted (approx.)
1 cup (250 mL) diced Black Forest ham
2 tsp (10 mL) Dijon mustard
1 cup (250 mL) Black Diamond Mozza Cheddar Shredded Cheese
8 eggs
2 green onions, thinly sliced
pinch pepper
DIRECTIONS
1. Place one sheet of phyllo dough on a work surface, keeping remainder covered with a damp towel; brush with a bit of the butter. Top with another sheet of phyllo; brush with a bit more butter. Cut into six squares.
2. Stack three of these squares, rotating each square slightly for the points to be slightly offset from each other; press into each of two greased muffin cups. Repeat with remaining phyllo and butter to make eight cups.
3. In a small bowl, toss ham with mustard; divide among each cup. Sprinkle with half of the cheese. Crack an egg into each cup; top with remaining cheese and the green onions. Sprinkle with pepper.
4. Bake in preheated 350°F (180°C) oven until eggs are set and pastry is golden brown, 16 to 20 minutes.
For dessert, we ordered cookies from Blue Aces Bakeshop in Salinas. They were wonderful!
Everyone left with a favor, a mini bottle of sparkling to open the day Jenna’s baby is born! The straws were found on Etsy
I think a good time was had by all. Stop here if you don’t want to see more people pics! Here I am with my oldest friend Tia. We met when we first moved to California and my blogging pal Mary Ann (Classic Casual Home). Maryann has a great post up today you won’t want to miss!
It helped having two adorable assistants Caroline and Margot (Jenna’s nieces and future babysitters),
…and a couple of mischievous dogs…
A huge thank you to my partners in crime Pat and Lauren. You guys made it look easy. I certainly couldn’t have done it without them. Pat took photographs so she managed to escape the camera. Pat is beautiful inside and out. I feel very fortunate to call her my friend.
If you would like more ideas and sources for this baby shower follow my Pinterest Board Baby Shower Ideas- Girl. Also please follow me on Instagram for more pics of the actual shower.
Cindy,
You look awesome…hair, make-up, jewelry, outfit. Would love a blog post tutorial on how you applied your make-up, styled your hair and your complete look from head to toe!
How many cups of beets do you use for the salad? I need to try this yummy looking salad.
Thanks so much for your blog…I enjoy every topic you cover.
Oh my goodness Alice you are my new best friend! Thank you so much for the kind words. I did a post awhile back about how to care for gray hair. It has been one of my most popular posts. I think I will do a repost on that soon. When I do beet salad I usually use 3 or 4 fresh beets. That was Pat’s salad but we both do the same one. It is a matter of personal taste!
Wow! What a happy occasion and a perfectly put together party! From the food, to the décor to the favors, to all the guests with such happy smiles, the day would be hard to beat. Congratulations!! You will have so much fun!
Thanks Leslie it was such a fun party. I am honored that you appreciated it!
Cindy, Wow just loved the styling of this beautiful shower!! Everything down to the favors was so fun and I loved the coral and silver. A great idea to bring home a bottle of bubbly to celebrate later. You must be so excited about the baby. Your daughter is darling. xo Kim
What a well planned shower. Love all the ideas and recipes. Very professional and classy. Thanks for sharing.
What a beautiful baby shower—love the decor and food!!! And you looked gorgeous!!
Hi Cindy and so happy to hear this great news!! Congratulations to you all and the shower looked beautiful. Can’t wait to see baby pictures in the future! Take care, Marilyn
Hi Marilyn! Miss you guys! You may regret that baby picture comment! I hope all is well with you guys!!
First I’d like say congratulations!!!! Her shower was gorgeous!!!! Love the colors, the menu, and the bubbly to go. Wishing her all the best. What a beautiful day.
Sharon
The House of Hampton
Thanks so much Sharon for the kind comments. It was a lot of fun and I can’t wait to be a grandma!!
What a gorgeous baby shower! The colors are beautiful and every detail is perfection. Thanks for sharing the recipes to those delicious looking dishes and those cookies, almost too cute to eat! Best part was seeing you and some of the guests at the end. Now I want to give a baby shower, but since I don’t know anyone who needs one, I’ll have to file these wonderful ideas.
xo Gail
CONGRATULATIONS!
You will be the BEST GRANNY!
The shower looks FABULOUS!The colors of the FOOD and table settings are GORGEOUS!
But WHY is everyone wearing BLACK or GREY?Maybe it was a RAINY DAY…….?
At first I thought maybe you gave a COLOR DRESS CODE!!!
YOU LOOK RESTED AND SO HAPPY!I have-not seen a BETTER PHOTO of YOU!
Congratulations …………I’m a bit jealous to be honest but the good NEWS is you will be up my way MORE OFTEN!Maybe I can grab you for a coffee!!!!!!
MY BEST to THE MOTHER TO BE!!!!!!!!!!!YOU have a LOT to LOOK forward TOO!
XX
What a lovely and fun party. Congratulations on an upcoming new addition to the family! I definitely appreciate this post. These tips come in handy when a shower opportunity comes up. Thanks so much, Cindy.
xo,
Karen
Grandchildren are the delightful cherry on top of the wonderful, sometimes worrisome experience of raising children. lol So happy for you all:)
What a beautiful shower and beautifully captured.
You look amazing, Cindy
I will be making the beet salad and brussels sprouts
Terri
Well…I must be the ONLY ONE who did not know you were going to be a grandma!! I wondered why you were posting things about babies on your Pintrest page. Congratulations to your entire family on this great news. You and Jenna look terrific and I couldn’t be happier for you. When is the baby due?
Hi Brenda!
Thank you so much! Jenna is due May 1. We are over the moon!
This shower truly had the “Cindy touch.” How many terrific ideas in one post! Baby showers will never be the same. Jenna absolutely glows! The game idea as the icebreaker was terrific. The cookie source must be amazing – I checked out their website. The “pop” takeaway was a fantastic idea. I guess we all know who will be an amazing grandma!
Hi Cheryl
Wow I hope I can live up to your expectations! I will be calling “the real perfect grandma” for advice! Happy Belated Birthday!
Cindy
What a beautiful shower! You and Jenna look amazing! I think you are glowing as much as she is.
Thanks Karen! Looking forward to seeing you this summer!
Oh wow, what a gorgeous shower! As I mentioned on IG, I’m planning a baby shower for my niece and you’ve provided so many wonderful ideas!!! I’m going to borrow the game/quiz and bubbles. Because the shower will be in California and I now live in the Pacific Northwest, I’m hosting the shower on a restaurant patio . . . so won’t be preparing food. That said, your Brussels sprouts recipe looks delicious and I’ll be making that at home – soon! Thanks for the timely post and amazing inspiration!
Hi Juliet …that brussel sprout recipe is a no brainer. Everyone always loves it. It is healthy and simple! Good Luck with the shower. I know it will be beautiful!
Thanks, and congratulations on your impending Grandmama-hood!
Yikes. What a shock to see myself at the end. I like being the photographer and avoiding the camera, but next time I will be sure to get in one of the pics so you don’t have to go hunting for one 🙂 Sure had a great time honoring Jenna and the house, flowers and decorations looked so beautiful.
I can’t believe you escaped all the pics! I could not have pulled that shower off without you and Lauren. You guys did the real work!
What a fabulous post. How refreshing to use coral as a colour. I am in awe at your ability and knowledge of where to find all of your resources. Would you please give us a tutorial on Canva? You look stunning. All in all this whole blog was a visual treat. Congratulations on becoming a grandma. It’s the best.
Thanks Sandy! Really canva is self explanatory. The more you use it the easier it gets! I am a huge fan. I would be happy to run you through it if you want to call!
Cindy!! What a wonderful post, these are great photos that really captured the beauty and fun of your shower. What an exciting time for you all. Your daughter radiates happiness. And that game! Oh I would love that game, what good idea. Thanks for sharing your tips and those recipes. Brussel sprouts are my favorite.
hugs from SoCal!!
Leslie
Hi Leslie! That game could be played at any party. It is a keeper! Thanks for the kind words! Hope to see you at the conference!!
I had the best time EVER. You are so right about Pat…love her. Thank you SO much for sharing all the recipes and sources. You are the BEST hostess!
Thank you so much for driving all the way down! You are the best! Loved your post this month what a great idea